It is to be regretted, since the art of printing has existed for so many centuries, that nothing in the Gaelic was ever produced in the form of a printed book until the year 1567. No doubt many valuable documents, poems, and charters were written on parchment and paper in that venerable language previous to that date, but the first Gaelic book was Bishop Carsewell's Translation of Knox's Liturgy, which was printed in the above year. Forms of prayer, the Administration of the Sacraments, and the Catechism of the Reformed Church of Scotland were composed by Knox, and published in a small volume. Carsewell was an earnest and zealous man, and in the discharge of his pastoral duties in districts where the Gaelic was the vernacular tongue, he could not fail to see the benefit to be derived from a manual in that language for the instruction of the people, and hence the translation and printing of the volume just alluded to. It was in the duodecimo form, and consisted of about three hundred pages. The printer was Robert Lekprevik who was remarkable in his day for the successful manner in which he executed black-letter printing. It was he who produced from his press "The Reasoning betwixt the Abbot of Crossraguel and John Knox," to which book were attached the words:—"Imprinted at Edinburgh by Robert Lekprevik, and are to be solde at his hous at the Netherbow, 1563."

It would appear that about that time this notable printer removed from Edinburgh to St Andrews, where printing of different kinds was carried on, to what was then considered a great extent. It was while in that town that he printed "Davidson's Metrical Version of Knox's History and Doctrines," in a volume of considerable size. The work was entitled:—"Ane brief commendation of Uprichtness."—"Imprentit at Sanctandrois be Robert Lekprevik, anno 1573."

It is a matter of no small regret to the lovers of the Celtic tongue, as well as to philologists in general, that the very interesting translation of Bishop Carsewell is now hardly to be had anywhere. It is said that the Duke of Argyle has a copy of it in his library at Inveraray Castle; and it is well known that another copy, and a very complete one, was in the possession of a well-known Gaelic scholar, and excellent Christian man, the late Mr John Rose, teacher at Aberarder, parish of Dunlichity, near Inverness. It is not known what has become of the copy of which Mr Rose was the owner, but it would be pleasing if it were somewhere in safe-keeping, and still more pleasing if it would find its way to the library shelves of the Gaelic Society of Inverness. The rarity of the little work in question makes it the more valuable, and while out of print it cannot be replaced.

The language of this small volume differs a little in spelling from the Gaelic of the present day, yet it is, upon the whole very plain, and quite intelligible to any one acquainted with the pronunciation of it. This may be seen, and better understood, by giving a small quotation from the work—viz., the concluding declaration of the learned translator, which runs as follows:—"Do chriochnvigheadh an leabhran beag so, le Heasbug Indseadh gall, an, 24 la do Mhi. Aprile sa seachtmhadh bliadhain tar thri fithid agas ar chuig ced, agas ar Mhile bliadhain dandaladh ar Dtighearna Iosa Criosd. Sa geuigeadh bliadhain tar fithid do RÌghe na RiÒghna ro chumhachtaighe Marie Banrighan na HÀlban."

The printer has concluded this interesting but now rare volume, by the words:—"Do Bvaileadh so agclo an Dvn Edin le Roibeart Lekprevik, 24 Aprilis, 1567."

John Carsewell, by all accounts, was a faithful servant of his Divine Master. He not only preached the Word with earnestness and power, but was always instant in season and out of season—"a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." He was for some years Rector of Kilmartin, a parish in the county of Argyle; but after the Reformation he was made Bishop of the Western Isles. A certain writer has said of the reverend gentleman that "he early joined the reformed clergy, and when the Protestant doctrine was ratified by Parliament in 1560, he was appointed Superintendent of Argyle." The superintendents, it will be recollected, were ministers set over a large district or diocese, in which they were appointed regularly to travel, for the purpose of preaching the gospel, of planting churches, and of inspecting the conduct of ministers, exhorters, and readers. They were, in fact, Bishops, but (according to the Book of Discipline) they were not "to be suffered to live idle, as the Bishops had done heretofore." Bishop Carsewell was wealthy and lived in state at Carnassary Castle, now in ruins, at the head of the Valley of Kilmartin.

This volume of Bishop Carsewell, to which the attention of the readers of the Celtic Magazine is now called, is very interesting from another point of view. In consequence of some incidental remarks made by the learned bishop, it will be seen that in his day traditions existed in the Highlands and Islands in regard to the Ossianic poetry. This is a fact which ought to be of no small importance in the present day, when such keen controversies exist as to the authenticity of the poetical productions attributed to Ossian. It is surely unreasonable to suppose if the poems in question had been the creation of James Macpherson, how it became possible for Bishop Carsewell to allude to the traditions in the Highlands and Islands regarding Fingal and his heroes upwards of two hundred years before Macpherson's day! Such direct and legitimate evidence as this ought to be allowed to have its full weight and force; and no prejudice on the part of such as are ignorant of the elegance and beauty of the Gaelic language ought to lead them away from a desire to believe what is really the truth. Carsewell dedicated his interesting volume to the Earl of Argyle, on whom he looked as his patron, and who, by his power and influence, aided the good Bishop in his earnest endeavours to promote the temporal and spiritual good of the population of his estates, as well as of that of the Highlands and Islands at large.

In his somewhat lengthy dedication, the following passage appears, which is here given as faithfully translated by the Committee of the Highland Society in their report on the poems of Ossian.

The passage in question runs as follows:—"But there is one great disadvantage which we, the Gael of Scotland and Ireland, labour under, beyond the rest of the world, that our Gaelic language has never yet been printed, as the language of every other race of men has been; and we labour under a disadvantage which is still greater than every other disadvantage, that we have not the Holy Bible printed in Gaelic, as it has been printed in Latin and English, and in every other language, and also that we have never yet had any account printed of the antiquities of our country, or of our ancestors; for though we have some accounts of the Gael of Scotland and Ireland contained in manuscripts, and in the genealogies of bards and historiographers, yet there is great labour in writing them over with the hand, whereas the work which is printed, be it ever so great, is speedily finished. And great is the blindness and sinful darkness, and ignorance, and evil design of such as teach, and write, and cultivate the Gaelic language, that, with the view of obtaining for themselves the vain rewards of this world, they are more desirous, and more accustomed to compose vain, tempting, lying, worldly histories concerning the 'seann dÀin,' and concerning warriors and champions, and Fingal, the son of Cumhail, with his heroes, and concerning many others which I will not at present enumerate or mention, in order to maintain or reprove, than to write and teach, and maintain the faithful words of God, and of the perfect way of truth."

It may be seen from this that the learned Bishop naturally complained of the great disadvantage under which the Gael, both in Scotland and Ireland, laboured in their not being possessed of any book whatever in the Gaelic, as nothing hitherto had ever been printed in that language. It would have been both interesting and instructive to have had the annals of their country recorded in this manner, as they could not have depended so much on the still more vague and uncertain narratives to which were handed down from age to age by tradition. No doubt the bards and seanachies had their manuscripts and parchments in which many important facts, and many ancient productions in poetry were recorded, but these were at best but comparatively few, and could benefit the community but to a small extent, compared with the productions of even such printing-presses as were made use of by the renowned Lekprevik. The want of the Holy Scriptures in the Gaelic language particularly in districts where it was the only spoken language, was a disadvantage which the good Bishop deeply deplored; and that want was no doubt the chief cause of his publishing his "Forms of Prayer, &c.," to facilitate his ministerial labours among the Highlanders. Had the Bishop been a prophet in a sense, and had he been able to have foreseen the keen controversies that were to take place two centuries after his time, relative to the poems that told of Fingal and his warriors, he would have given a more detailed account of the Ossianic poetry which was no rare thing in his day. Posterity would have felt very grateful to the learned gentleman if he had enlarged somewhat on the songs and tales of olden times, as he had every opportunity of hearing them rehearsed by the family bards of chieftains, as well as by the clan seanachies who made such things their sole employment. Carswell seemed to think (as many clergymen have thought in latter times) that the Highlanders, among whom he laboured, paid too much attention to their songs and tales about warriors and Fingalian battles, and thereby neglected the more important preparations for a future world. In all probability he directed his eloquent addresses against such practices, although by no means successful in extinguishing them. For two centuries they descended from age to age, and were communicated from sire to son, until ultimately stamped out by the effects of adverse changes, and of the altered economy in the management of the Highlands and Islands.

SGIATHANACH.

Kilmuir, Skye, in 1842—Ossian and Witchcraft.—There is no medical practitioner nearer than the village of Portree, upwards of twenty miles distant, and the consequence is that he is never sent for but in cases of extreme danger. Three or four individuals lately died at the age of 100. In the district of Steinscholl a man died about twelve years ago, named John Nicolson, or Maccormaic, at the very advanced age of 105. There is one circumstance connected with this old man's history worthy of notice, which is, that he could repeat the most of Ossian's Fingal, Temora, &c., with great fluency and precision. The writer of this heard him say that he committed these beautiful poems to memory from hearing them repeated, when a boy, by his grandfather. If this fact be not sufficient to establish the authenticity of these unparalleled poems, it must surely establish the truth, that they existed before the time of Macpherson, who attempted to translate them into the English language. The silly allegation by some that Ossian's poems were Macpherson's own production is palpably confuted by Mac Cormaic and others, who could repeat them before Macpherson was born. But should that not have been the case, and should none have been found who could rehearse them before Macpherson's time, the allegation that they were either by Macpherson, or by any other in the age in which he lived, appears ridiculous in the sight of such as know the construction and beauty of the Celtic language... Some time ago the natives firmly believed in the existence of the "Gruagach," a female spectre of the class of Brownies, to whom the dairy-maids made frequent libations of milk. The "Gruagach" was said to be an innocent supernatural visitor, who frisked and gambolled about the pens and folds. She was armed only with a pliable reed, with which she switched any who would annoy her, either by uttering obscene language or by neglecting to leave for her a share of the dairy production. Even so late as 1770, the dairy-maids, who attended a herd of cattle in the Island of Trodda, were in the habit of pouring daily a quantity of milk in a hollow stone for the "Gruagach." Should they neglect to do so they were sure of feeling the effects of Miss Brownie's wand next day. It is said that the Rev. Donald Macqueen, then minister of this parish, went purposely to Trodda to check that gross superstition. He might then have succeeded for a time in doing so, but it is known that many believed in the "Gruagach's" existence long after that reverend gentleman's death. Besides the votaries of this ridiculous superstition, there are others who confidently believe in the existence of a malignant look or evil eye, by which cattle and all kinds of property are said to suffer injury. The glance of an evil eye is consequently very much dreaded. No doubts are entertained that it deprives cows of their milk, and milk of its nutritive qualities so as to render it unfit for the various preparations made from it. This superstition can certainly lay claim to great antiquity.

"Nescio quis teneros oculus mihi fascinat agnos."—Virg.

—New Statistical Account of Kilmuir, Skye, "drawn up by Mr Alexander Macgregor, M.A., Licentiate of the Church of Scotland, and son of the Incumbent."